


And Then He Kissed Me

by one_starry_night



Category: Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: Canon, Clueless Betty Cooper, Coming of Age, F/M, First Time Sex, Friends to Lovers, Jealous Jughead, Kissing, Makeouts, Mild Angst, Mutual Pining, Pining, Slight Smut, Suspicious Jughead, Unresolved Romantic Tension, romantic sex
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-18
Updated: 2017-09-18
Packaged: 2018-12-31 01:54:56
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,820
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12122001
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/one_starry_night/pseuds/one_starry_night
Summary: Summary: Betty Cooper comes to the realization that Jughead is the one she's needed all along. All it takes is a single kiss.Disclaimer: I do not own the characters from Archie Comics or Riverdale (TV); this story is just for fun and not for profit.Author's Note: At the beginning of this fic, Jughead quotes Washington Irving to Betty. It sounded awkward to add that into the dialogue, so I'm putting the quotation credit here.Song Credit: The song lyrics used in this fic are from the song, "Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow" by The Shirelles.





	And Then He Kissed Me

_"Each time I saw him I couldn't wait to see him again_  
_I wanted to let him know that he was more than a friend_  
_I didn't know just what to do_  
_So I whispered I love you_  
_He said that he loved me too_  
_And then he kissed me"_

-Lyrics: The Crystals, _And Then He Kissed Me_

 

Betty Cooper was sitting in the bleachers watching Archie Andrews sprint across the field. Her green eyes darted left, then right as she watched Archie’s cleats crush the terrain beneath his heels. He noticed her once and waved, but when Betty tried to return the friendly gesture, his eyes had already returned to whatever focal point he was using on the field. It didn’t matter what said focal point was, really, because all Betty knew was that it wasn’t (and had _never_ been) her. Betty was painfully aware of the fact that Archie was never going to like her that way. At first, wishful thinking told her otherwise. They had a chance, she thought, because they had grown up together, lived next door to one another – _you know_ , the typical girl next door likes said guy next door cliché. But alas it was never to be. When Veronica Lodge moved into the neighborhood, Archie’s eyes found a new focal point. When he wasn’t running during practice, his eyes were transfixed on Veronica Lodge. Betty Cooper wasn’t even on his horizon line anymore. Instead, she had been relegated to the back of the bleachers.

 

“Unrequited love is _never_ lost, Betts. “If not reciprocated, it will flow back and soften and purify the heart.”

 

Betty continues to stare at the red-head on the field.

 

Jughead plops down next to Betty, touching the sides of his converse to her flats. He leans to the right, moving his mouth is closer to her ear as whispers a little, “Your staring again, Betts. You know that, right?”

 

“What?” Betty continues to stare at the red-head on the field.

 

“Hello, earth to Betty.” Jughead waves his hand across her face, which breaks whatever enchantment she’s seemingly under.

 

“Whoa, sorry.” She shakes her head and turned to face him, “How long was I like that?”

 

“It’s impossible to say, really, but you’ve been doing that a lot since Veronica Lodge moved here.”

 

“Am I that obvious?” Betty bites her lower lip.

 

Jughead places his hand onto her shoulder, and looks her dead in the eye, “Yes, but I won’t hold it over your head. I know what it’s like to be in your position. It’s like the other person isn’t even aware of your feelings for them.”

 

“You do?”

 

“ _Yes_.” Jughead says in admission, a touch of slight hesitation evident in his voice.

 

“Well, how’d you get over it?”

 

“ _I didn’t_.” Jughead clears his throat and changes the subject quickly, “Any anyways, we should probably start on that homework assignment. I’ve already made some progress on it, albeit rather slowly, but I don’t want it cutting into my weekend.”

 

“Okay,” Betty sighs. She takes one last look at Archie and fixes her gaze on Jughead completely, “So, your place or mine?”

 

“Can we just go to your house?” Jughead shifts his beanie uncomfortably and looks away from her, “My dad’s back at the trailer now.”

 

“Oh,” Betty raises her eyebrows, “How is he?”

 

“Okay.” Jughead doesn’t look her in the eyes.

 

“That’s good.” Betty doesn’t make things awkward for him by asking anymore follow-up questions. She knows when he’s uncomfortable because he gets that far off look in his eyes along with something else she can’t quite place, but she always notices the change in his demeanor right away. Instead, she grabs his hand and laces her fingers through his, “Ready?”

 

Jughead just nods. He’s grateful that she knows him well enough to know that he doesn’t want to talk about it. And yeah, things are rough with his dad right now – _unbelievably so_ – but _this_ he can handle. He’s been handling _it_ (the nameless thing, which he’s finally admitted to himself is his father’s alcoholism) like a pro. Sure, things are backwards in the house, with Jughead acting more like the adult and FP acting more like the child – it’s the veritable _through the goddamn looking glass_ novel and he’s the star. Everything in his world is upside down and there’s nothing he can do about it (at least, for now).

 

And then there’s that one thing. The thing that threatens to rip his friendship with the proverbial girl next door apart. For him, the thing has a name: Betty Cooper. Ironically, he was looking the object of his affection in the face as he openly admitted that he had experienced unrequited love. She doesn’t even know it’s her,’ Jughead thinks, ‘and she never will.’

…

They settle into Betty’s room easily enough, with Betty laying down on the bed and Jughead resting his back against the headboard. This isn’t the first time he’s been in here, so there’s no awkwardness when there probably should be. But as long as he keeps his emotions in check, Jughead thinks, the awkwardness will never rear its head. They work on the project for about an hour when Jughead catches Betty sneaking a peak at a girly magazine.

 

She doesn’t even notice his eyes on her.

 

“Betts.” Jughead grabs the magazine and slowly slides it away from her, “This doesn’t look like our History homework.”

 

“Jughead, give that back to me.”

 

“What are you reading, anyways?” Jughead just stares at the front cover. It’s only then that he sees the euphemisms all over the cover - words alluding to other adult things. “Betty,” Jughead raises an eyebrow, “Is _this_ an adult magazine?”

 

“Give me that,” Betty attempts to snatch it out of his hands, but Jughead is faster, he flips through the pages and lands on something that causes Bettys cheeks to heat up,

 

“ _How to please your man, simple tips for_ _lovemaking_ – _Betty!_ ” Jughead looks up at her, “Where did you get this?!”

 

“My sister,” Betty says quietly. She’s embarrassed, but at least it’s _just_ Jughead. She knows he’ll tease her, but nothing more will come of it.

 

“Betty, your so much classier than the girls who read this sorry excuse of a publication. Why on earth are you reading _this_ anyways?”

 

Betty grows quiet, not wanting this part of herself to be exposed. She’s grateful in his moment that she _isn’t_ dating Archie Andrews and that he and her other family members are nowhere to be seen.

 

“I’ve _never_ been kissed,” Betty says quietly.

 

Jughead looks at her incredulously, “So, you somehow needed an adult magazine because of that, Betts? I’m confused.”

 

“Yes.”

 

“That makes no sense, Betty.”

 

Betty grabs the magazine from him and shoves it under her spiral notebook. She pretends to go back to work on the project, but Jughead knows better. He’s watching her and he’s smiling.

 

“What?”

 

“ _Nothing_.”

 

“No, it’s _not_ nothing, Jughead. Your thinking something and I want to know what.”

 

“Look,” Jughead concedes, “I just don’t understand why you wanted to look at stuff in that sex magazine, that’s all. I think it’s funny.”

 

“Fine. _If_ I tell you, will you shut-up about it and forget we ever had this conversation in the first place?”

 

“I mean, I won’t mention it ever again, _but_ that doesn’t mean I’m going to forget it, Betts.”

 

“ _Jughead_ ,” Betty hits him with a pillow.

 

“Kidding. But in all seriousness, why?”

 

Betty sighs, “Because, Jughead, the truth is I don’t anything about how to be a good kisser _or_ …”

 

“ _Or_ ,” Jughead says the word, drawing it out.

 

“Sex, okay. Are you happy now?”

 

Jughead can’t believe that he and Betty are having this conversation. And what’s even more unbelievable is what comes out of his mouth next, before he can even stop himself, “I don’t either.”

 

_Fuck._

 

“Wait,” Betty eyes him suspiciously, “You’re not serious, are you?

 

Jughead just gulps, “Yeah, Betts. I’ve never had sex before either _so_ …”

 

“But you’ve kissed someone right? You’ve kissed people?” Betty searches his face.

 

“No,” Jughead says flatly, and feels so embarrassed in this moment that he wants to just disappear, “No, Betts, I’ve also never kissed anyone.”

 

“Oh.”

 

Jughead cocks his head to the side, “You seem surprised.”

 

“A little.” Betty concedes

 

Neither of them say anything after that. They work on the project for another hour without looking each other in the eye.

 

Betty thumbs the magazine, which doesn’t go unnoticed by Jughead. She’s thinking. Jughead shifts on her bed, so he’s propped against the headboard sitting next to her. As he’s highlighting an article, Betty searches his face. What would it be like to kiss him, she wonders. I mean, they both needed to learn anyways, right?

 

Betty clears her throat and Jughead looks at her. He watches as she jumps off the bed, slides across the floor a little (she’s still wearing socks) and peers out the window. Something seems to satisfy her, so she goes over to her door and closes it shut, clicking the lock shut at its left side. She presses her back against the door.

 

“Betty?” Jughead is thoroughly confused now. “What are you doing?”

 

She stares.

 

“ _Okay_ …” Jughead gives her another weird look and then looks down at the article he was reading only a minute prior.

 

“Jughead.”

 

He looks up again, seeing the determination in her eyes, but he’s unsure of what (or whom) it’s even directed at.

 

“Look,” Betty backs away from the door and walks towards her bed, she sits down beside him, “Okay, this is going to sound weird, but _what if_ …”

 

Jughead slants his eyes at her.

 

“I have a proposal for you.”

 

“Go on.” He’s thoroughly confused now.

 

“What if, we practice kissing each other… _as friends of course_.” Betty adds quickly.

 

Jughead doesn’t know what to do, he doesn’t say anything because he’s in shock.

 

“I’m sorry. That was weird of me to say, never mind, forget it.”

 

Jughead has forgotten how to speak in this moment, so he clears his throat and goes back to pretending he’s reading the article instead of thinking about kissing Betty.

 

There’s an uncomfortable silence between them, and while Betty has gone back to flipping the pages of her notebook, Jughead is just thinking. This could possibly be the one chance he gets to kiss Betty Cooper. _Ever._ Instead of responding to her, he sits and thinks about how this could go wrong. When he can’t think of any cons (because he’s already been friend zoned anyways) he decides, ‘ _Fuck it_.’

 

Jughead clears his throat again and Betty looks up at him. Before he even knows what he’s doing, he grabs the book out of her hands and his mouth is on hers. It’s like everything he’d ever imagined, only better. Her mouth is soft against his lips and he’s shocked when he feels her kissing him back a second later, which gives him the courage he needs; he pulls his hands up to her face to hold her lips against his for another second. And when their lips part, he’s in shock when he sees that her eyes are still closed and she’s smiling. When she opens them, his hand is still against her cheek and Jughead is suddenly feeling very nervous.

 

“Say something, Betts?”

 

But Betty doesn’t say anything. Instead, she presses her lips to his again and all Jughead thinks is _yes_ – he’s _really_ going to like this.

…

It’s weird. He knows their only practicing kissing as _just_ friends, but she seems into it (he thinks). That weekend, he goes over to her house like he always does and they hang out in her room, only this time, Betty waits for her mother’s car to drive down the driveway and disappear down the street. Once it does, Betty is all over him. They hold each other’s faces as they lay on top of her bedspread and just kiss. This goes on for about forty-five minutes. They kiss each other softly for a little while. Then, one or both of them picks up the pace; soon, their kissing a bit faster than before. And strangely enough (though Jughead continues to remind himself that he’s not _with_ her and that he’s essentially just doing her a favor), Betty is _actually_ responding to his kisses. It starts with a sigh against his lips and when he really picks up the pace, she begins to thread her fingers gently through his hair. And that’s when he knows their ‘practice session’ is done for the day; he wants to kiss her without restraint and he can’t. Realizing how excited this is making him, Jughead breaks their light make-out session first.

 

“Betty.” He sighs and looks at her mouth.

 

“What?” She just looks at him.

 

Jughead clears his throat and sits up quickly. “We should go eat something, yeah?” He stands up and turns away from her, willing his excitement to go down so he doesn’t make her uncomfortable. After all, he reminds himself, this is just for practice.

…

When they are at school on Monday, Jughead is walking to Pre-Cal when he overhears Betty and another familiar voice chatting away in the hall. And normally, Jughead is immune to listening in on other people’s conversations; he just assumes they are talking about football practice or town gossip, so he ignores such conversations (most of the time, anyways). But as he rounds the corner, he realizes this is no ordinary conversation. Trev Brown is hovering over Betty as she’s slumped against her locker and she’s smiling at him and laughing at whatever lame joke he’s managed to muster during their high school flirt-fest. And while Jughead knows that Betty doesn’t like _him_ that way, he cannot help but feel a pang of jealously as he notices the way Betty smiles at Trev, leans into him, places her arm against his shoulder. _Fuck him_ , he thinks.

 

Jughead takes a deep breath and soothes his fears with a familiar lie, ‘you are immune to the charms of women.’ Of course, as soon as he overhears Trev ask Betty out on a date Friday night, he’s all but forgotten his pretentious little mantra. Now he just feels sick to his stomach, worrying he’ll never get to kiss Betty again. If they were going to be at Pop’s on Friday night, then he was going, too.

…

When Friday night rolls around, Jughead strategically places himself in the back corner of Pop Tate’s diner. He orders his usual – a cup of joe, black, no milk or sugar – and settles comfortably into the booth. An hour later, Betty strolls in ahead of Trev. Instead of her usual jean and sweater ensemble, she’s wearing a light-yellow dress with a pink carnation at its side; her hair is down her shoulders for a change, curled in loose waves. He watches as Trev waits for her to sit down first. That’s good, he thinks. At least Trev is trying. If he can’t have Betty, he would rather she was out with Trev rather than Reggie Mantle or someone far worse. Archie Andrews immediately comes to mind. And maybe he can’t have Betty. _Fine._ But he’ll always be forever grateful that his friend never saw Betty’s true worth. For if he did, Jughead was quite certain that his heart would have imploded inside his chest by now.

 

After a few minutes, Trev excuses himself from the booth. With her view unobstructed, she notices Jughead almost immediately. Betty mouths ‘hey Jug’ and waves at him as she takes a sip of her strawberry milkshake. Apparently though, his consternation is written all over his face because Betty mouths ‘you okay’ before Trev sits down again. Jughead just nods. He watches as Betty and Trev resume their conversation. As her laughter echoes through the restaurant, Jughead feels as though he’s been stabbed in the proverbial gut. With one final laugh, the deal is sealed. He yanks the computer cord from the wall, flaps his laptop down and rushes out the door, not even bothering to look at Betty as she watches him, eyes wide with confusion.

 

As Jughead walks down the street, he kicks a rock in his path, yells ‘fuck’ under his breath, and walks straight to Betty Cooper’s house. After he knocks on the door, Alice Cooper opens it without any hesitation. She explains that Betty is ‘out on a date with Trev Brown, but will be back in twenty’ and why doesn’t he just ‘come inside and wait for her in her room?’ Jughead thanks her politely, takes off his converse, puts them on the rack beside the door and walks upstairs. He sits down on the floor with his back propped against her bed and pulls out his phone. And truthfully, he doesn’t even know what he’s doing here, waiting alone in Betty Cooper’s room. She’s not his girlfriend and he’s certainly not going to tell her he’s in love with her.

…

When Betty opens the door to her bedroom, she’s still wearing the delicate yellow dress from earlier. She strides across the carpeting in her bare feet, the sight of which does something to him. She hovers above him for a moment and sits down on her knees so she’s more at his level.

 

Betty places her hand onto his shoulder, “My mom said you were up here waiting for me. Did something happen today? You seemed really upset at Pop’s.”

 

“Not really,” Jughead looks down, pretending to fumble with his phone, sliding one sock against the carpeting.

 

“Then why did you leave the diner looking like you wanted to deck someone?”

 

“No reason,” he lies, “I just didn’t have the best day today.” Jughead sits up and they walk over to her bed. Jughead plops down onto her comforter, resting his head against her headboard as Betty does the same.

 

Jughead sighs as Betty flips on the tv.

 

Betty studies Jughead for a minute, his jaw seems tense, so she brushes her hand against his cheek and says quietly, “Did something happen with your dad again, Jug?”

 

Jughead shakes his head. He grabs her hand and holds it on the bed. Betty moves underneath the covers, pushing her bare feet towards the bottom of the bed and Jughead does the same. They watch tv in silence, when Jughead suddenly blurts out, “So, did you kiss Trev?”

 

Betty shakes her head. She turns to look at Jughead, who’s laying still beside her, “No, and I don’t think that’s going to happen with him anyways. I think we’re better off as friends.”

 

“Oh.” Relief washes over him, but he tries not to let it show.

 

“I mean, I like Trev, but I don’t know. There was just that little _something_ missing between us tonight. That’s that, I guess.”

 

“Does he know that?” Jughead can’t help but hide his smile.

 

“Yeah, I think so.” Betty admits, “I mean, he said good night to me and gave me a hug. He did say, though, he’d be game to split another milkshake with me at some point.”

 

“Hey, you can’t do that with Trev. I mean, another date, fine. But not _that_.”

 

Betty shifts so they’re facing each other beneath the covers, “And I why not?” She says playfully.

 

“That’s my job.”

 

“Finishing my food?”

 

“Yes.”

 

Betty laughs. She pulls his hand out from under the covers, lacing her fingers in his, “You know, I didn’t kiss Trev, but that doesn’t mean I don’t still need some practice, you know, for when the time comes and I need to kiss my date.”

 

Jughead’s eyes flicker to Betty’s mouth, which clearly doesn’t go unnoticed by her. As he pulls his eyes to hold her gaze, Betty presses her lips to his, causing Jughead to smile against her mouth. And Betty decides, she likes seeing him smile because he does it so rarely. When their lips part again, Jughead puts runs his fingers along her jaw and pulls her in for another kiss. Then, he pulls his mouth away from hers and whispers in her ear.

 

“So, how good do you want to get at this kissing thing?” It’s a bold move on his part. Jughead swallows as he awaits her response.

 

“Honestly, I’d say pretty good to being a damn near expert.”

 

Jughead looks at her, “You’re sure?”

 

Betty nods. Her non-verbal cue is all he needs to know as he gives her a bruising kiss and, for the first time, trails his lips down her neck. Betty whimpers at first, but the initial sound of shock dissipates as it turns into sigh upon sigh. Betty pushes his hat off his head and runs her fingers through his hair as Jughead’s lips wash over her collarbone. When he presses his lips to hers again, Betty wraps her arms around his neck as Jughead’s hands move down her waist. This is good, she thinks. The feel of his hands against her skin, and lips around her neck. She wouldn’t feel comfortable doing this with anyone else, really. And so, as Jughead kisses her, Betty licks his bottom lip with her tongue. Jughead groans in surprise, pulling his hand up to her cheek as he begins Frenching her with his mouth. They stay like this for nearly an hour, only stopping at the sound of Alice Cooper’s heels coming up the stairs.

…

Jughead knows it isn’t fair to her, but he’s enjoying it too much (albeit rather selfishly). _And he has to enjoy it for now_. He knows this – their little kissing practices between each other - will have to end eventually. That, or he’ll have to tell her how he really feels about her, which terrifies him as she’s not likely to reciprocate. But then he remembers how she had moaned his name as he’d gotten a little handsy the other night. He had pulled her dress strap down to plant a kiss against her shoulder, which he thought was innocent enough, but Betty on the other hand, had nearly come undone from that gesture alone. But it was all practice, right? She was just pretending to “get good at kissing.” It’s what they had both agreed to, what she had wanted. So why then, did it _seem_ real to him?

…

That same week, Jughead meets Betty in the old classroom that’s been relegated as the Blue and Gold’s headquarters. As Betty outlines the article they’re about to put in the paper, Jughead just stares at her. He stares at her face, her eyes, her mouth – he doesn’t even pay attention to the question she’d asked him.

 

“So, what do you think? Will that work?”

 

“What?”

 

“Jughead, you weren’t even paying attention to what I was saying.”

 

“Sorry,” Jughead lifts his hand to her cheek. His eyes flick to her lips, but before their moment can turn into something more, they hear a voice behind them, which make a resounding ‘ahem.’

 

“Am I interrupting something?”

 

“Not at all, what’s up Kev.”

 

“Weathersby is looking for you, Betty.”

 

“Oh,” Betty jumps up, but not before flicking Jughead’s lips with her thumb, “Be right back.”

 

The action doesn’t go unnoticed by Kevin who watches as Betty darts out of the classroom and disappears down the hallway. He looks back at her, raises his eyebrows and turns to Jughead.

 

Jughead pretends to ignore Kevin as he looks down at his notebook.

 

“So, you and betty, huh?”

 

“It’s not like that, Kev.”

 

“No,” Kevin grabs a chair and straddles it, staring Jughead in the face, “So what’s it like then? Because I _totally_ detected a moment there.”

 

“Your insufferable. You know that, right?”

 

“True, but if you want to get rid of me that badly you have a couple of options.”

 

“Now you’re talking some sense,” Jughead looks up at him, “Go on.”

 

“Kevin grips the chair in front of him, “You could a, tell me what’s going on between you and Betty, or b, just ask her out already. Although I prefer the former to the latter.”

 

“Not gonna happen, Kev. Sorry.”

 

“You are so moody, you know that. But clearly some chicks dig that. So is that a ‘no’ to what’s going on with you and Betty or ‘no’ to asking her out?”

 

“ _Both_.”

 

“Okay, you clearly don’t understand how this works, so I’m willing to work with you.”

“And you clearly don’t understand my painfully simple vernacular. Read my lips Kev, I _don’t_ want to talk about it.”

 

“Touchy much. Geez, Jughead. You really need to get laid.”

 

“Jughead?” A voice interjects Kevin and Jughead’s light tiff with each other.

 

Jughead looks up from his desk at the same time Kevin turns around in his chair.

 

“Trev,” He doesn’t bother to hide the irritation in his voice, “What can I help you with?”

 

“Is Betty here? I wanted to see if she’s free this weekend.”

 

“For?”

 

‘Poor Trev,’ Kevin thinks as he grins silently during the heated exchange between the two.

 

“My parents are throwing this party, _so_ …”

 

“So, you wanted to see if Betty is free for a date?”

 

“Yeah?”

 

“Oh. Well, Betty already made plans this weekend, _so_ …”

 

“But she said _that_ …”

 

Jughead gets up from his desk and puts his hand on Kev’s shoulders, “Honestly Kev, she’s seeing someone else.”

 

“ _Oh_. Well, I didn’t know. I guess I’ll head to gym now. Tell her I dropped by.”

 

“We _sure_ will, “Kevin looks over at Jughead, “Won’t we, _Jughead_?”

 

“Sure thing,” Jughead grits his teeth at Kevin.

 

Trev looks at them both, completely confused. “Okay, thanks.”

 

As soon as Trev is out the door, Kevin turns to Jughead, “What the fuck, Romeo? Seeing someone? Betty’s indisposed? Dude, you had better tell me what’s going on or I’ll tell Betty what you just said to Trev.”

 

Faced with the prospect of losing his afternoons spent kissing Betty and cuddling in her bed, Jughead caves, albeit a little begrudgingly, “Fine. Betts and I are helping each other with something.”

 

“Oh god, you’re not like hooking up, are you?”

 

“No, well, I’m sure it’s not what you’re thinking anyways.”

 

“Jughead, what on earth is going on between you two?”

 

“Were kissing each other so we can,” Jughead looks flustered as he gesticulates, “Both get good at it. _There._ Happy? Can you leave now?”

 

“Wait, what?”

 

“Don’t make me spell it out for you, Kev. Your brighter than that.”

 

“Let me get this straight, your practicing kissing - _on each other_?”

 

“Well, yeah.”

 

“And she doesn’t know you _like her_ like her?”

 

“Well, yeah - _no_ \- I mean, that’s not what I mean.”

 

“That’s all I needed to know, Romeo.” And he’s out the door.

 

Jughead looks down at his notebook. Surely Kevin wouldn’t tell her, would he?

…

It happens again when there in Betty’s room studying that weekend. At first, they both sit leisurely on her bed like they always do, with Betty smiling up at him on occasion and Jughead flicking her ponytail with his pencil. Betty just grins in response and mouths ‘stop’ as she makes a pretend fist in the air and attempts to grab the pencil out of his hand. Jughead says he needs a break from studying and Betty agrees. She gets up and walks over to her desk, wearing that pale pink skirt he’s quite fond of; she’s wearing tall socks, too, which he finds sexy as hell in contrast to the skirt. Jughead sighs. When Betty turns around, she brandishes a record in front of him, shaking it left and right as she shimmies in her socks.

 

“Up for some oldies?”

 

“Where did you get that?” He just grins.

 

“My dad’s stash.”

 

“Alright. Play it.”

 

Betty turns around and adjusts the dial on the record player. Jughead watches as she begins to sway her hips back and forth against the machine. He watches as her head drops back a little and her eyes close. She moves to the beat of the music again and again, mouthing the words as she taps her fingers against her desk. When she turns around again, she just says, ‘I love this song’ and continues to dance around the room a little, eyes closed as she begins to get lost in the melody. As if the sight of her like this isn’t enough to make him come undone already, she grabs the desk, leans back against it, and begins to sing.

 

_“Tonight you're mine, completely_

_You give your love so sweetly_

_Tonight the light of love is in your eyes_

_But will you love me tomorrow”_

 

Before he knows it, she’s pulling him off the bed, arms thrown around his neck as she continues to sway to the music, throwing her head back left, then right. With his arms firmly around her waist, he moves his head forward, brushing his lips against the skin of her neck. Betty sighs. She hasn’t even looked up yet (or told him to stop) so he does it again, moaning in between the lyrics she sings as he kisses her neck. When she finally pulls her head up, her gaze meets his. As their eyes lock, she smiles, pressing her lips to his. He’s drowning ( _he thinks_ ), he just might die like this.

 

They end up on her bed, with Betty straddling him as Jughead kisses her cheeks, her neck, and the top of her chest. Betty snakes her fingers around his neck and shuts her eyes. He pulls his lips off her neck and curls his fingers beneath her sweater, “Can I take this off?”

 

She just nods, pressing her hand and a kiss to his lips. As he pulls the sweater off, she shrugs the garment off and returns her lips to his. After a few minutes, she pulls his grey shirt off as their kisses take on a life of their own. Betty’s eyes are still closed as Jughead licks a stripe against her ear. She moans and pulls his hair as his face presses against her neck. Soon, she wraps her legs around him fully. He stills suddenly, pulling his face away from her. He looks dizzy as she looks down at him; she’s never seen him like this before, completely lacking control.

 

“What’s wrong, Jug?”

 

“Betty,” He’s panting now, “We’ve got to stop, _I can’t_ …”

 

“Why?”

 

Jughead looks down at her waist and grabs her hips, “This – _you_ – it’s too much.”

 

“How so?”

 

Eyes still shut, Jughead clenches her hips, “It’s making me too excited.”

 

“Oh,” She looks down at him, lips parted, “Do you want to stop?”

 

Jughead feels her hair with the pads of his fingers, “No, god no, Betts. But if we keep going on like this, it’s going to be harder for me to stop kissing you and I’ll want more. I already _want_ more.”

 

Betty doesn’t hear him, though. That or she’s deliberately chosen to ignore what he just said as she uncurls her legs from his waist, but continues kissing him, pressing him down against the bed with Jughead still cradling her face in his hands.

…

Later that night, after Betty’s fallen asleep, he covers her with a blanket and lets himself out of her house before Alice Cooper sees him. It’s half past midnight when he gets back to his father’s trailer. Jughead knows he has a stupid grin on his face as he steps through the front door, but he doesn’t fucking care; after all, he just made-out with Betty! As if in a daze, he walks to the back of the trailer and opens the door to his room. He shrugs off his jacket in one quick movement. Then, he plops his head against the pillow on his bed. He just stares at the ceiling, smiling as he falls asleep to the soft sound of the radio, imagining her voice against his neck. And before sleep overtakes him, his mind replays the lyrics she sang to him one last time.

 

_“Is this a lasting treasure_

_Or just a moment's pleasure_

_Can I believe the magic of your sighs_

_Will you still love me tomorrow?”_

…

When Jughead gets to school the next day, he’s eager to find Betty. What he doesn’t expect though, is to see Archie Andrews _almost_ flirting with her against her locker. At first, he reminds himself that there’s no need to fear, Archie has already rejected her on several fronts and moved onto Veronica. But suddenly, he hears the words “Saturday” and “my place” strung together in a single sentence and his mind conjures up the worst possible scenario. Surely, he’s not asking her out now? After everything he’s put her through? _Fuck._ Jughead makes a fist at the wall, turns around and walks outside. Betty sees everything from corner of her eye. She quickly tells Archie she’ll ‘call him’ as she runs after Jughead.

 

“Jughead? Jughead – _wait_!”

 

“What?” He turns around, eyes not meeting hers.

 

Betty presses her hand to his cheek, but he still doesn’t look at her, “Why did you look so upset just now, Jug? I saw you hit the wall.”

 

Jughead moves his eyes down a little to face her, “Archie.”

 

“What about him?”

 

Jughead sighs, “He was asking you out, _right_?”

 

“Asking me out – _oh_.” Betty smiles to herself, “No, that’s not what you heard Jug. And honestly, even if he _was_ asking me out, I would never say yes. Not now, anyways.”

 

“You wouldn’t?”

 

Betty’s thumb is still rubbing his cheek, “No. Firstly, I’m a little tired of playing second fiddle to Veronica Lodge. I know he doesn’t see me the same way he sees her, and anyways, that doesn’t matter.” Betty clears her throat, “Archie and I were talking about me coming over to pick something up for my parents at his house on Saturday.”

 

“You were?”

 

“Yes.”

 

Jughead sighs and looks down at her.

 

“Listen, Jug,” Betty removes her hand from his face and slides it down his arm, grabbing his hand, “Can _we_ – _look_ , meet at my place Friday night. Use the ladder.”

 

“Friday night?”

 

“Friday night.” Betty isn’t short, but Jughead is so much taller than she is, so she steps on her tiptoes and plans a kiss against the corner of his mouth.

 

First, Jughead lets out a sigh before a smile spreads across his lips and he mutters, “I have to get to class,” He looks down at her, shoves his hands in his pockets and walks off.

 

Betty turns to see Kevin Keller standing in her wake, “Oh, hey Kev. I didn’t know you were standing there, what’s up?”

 

“What’s up, Betty, is that Jughead is _in love with you_. Kissing practice? Betty, you’ve got to be kidding me. You are mind fucking poor Jughead.”

 

Betty stills, grabbing the strap of her purse uncomfortably.

 

“You know he likes you, right?”

 

“Were friends, Kev. And Jughead is my _best friend_.”

 

“Uh-huh,” Kevin watches as Betty’s cheeks turn bright red, “Unless – _oh my god_. Betty, you like him now, don’t you?”

 

Betty balls her hands together and looks at the ground.

 

“You wanted to ‘practice kissing’ and now you’ve fallen in love with your practice partner! Oh my. This _is_ juicy.”

 

“Gotta go.” Betty shoves past Kevin, bumping his arm slightly as she hurries briskly down the school steps near the parking lot.

 

“My babies,” Kevin rolls his eyes, “When will they ever learn.”

…

Betty is already in her pajamas when she hears a light knock against her window. She smiles and jolts out of bed to unhinge the window.

 

Jughead steps through the window carefully, planting one foot in front of the other, “It’s freezing outside, Betts. I would have preferred to use the door, care to tell me why you had me use the ladder?”

 

“I just wanted to be sure they didn’t see you come in here.”

 

Jughead steps closer to her, so they’re facing each other in the middle of her room, “Who, Betty? Your parents? I’m pretty sure they won’t care. Your mom let me in your room when you were out, remember?”

 

Betty nods her head and bites her lower lip.

 

“So…” Jughead grabs her hand, “What’s up?”

 

“I suppose you could have used the front door, but I didn’t know they were gonna be gone tonight when I told you to come over.”

 

“Gone? Oh Betty, they won’t care if I’m over. We’ve been doing this for years, remember?”

 

“Still,” Betty grows quiet, taking his hands in hers.

 

Jughead quickly let’s go of them, mustering up the courage to do what he needs to; it’s inevitable, really, “Betty, I need to talk to you about something.”

 

“What is it?” As she looks up at him, her eyes flicker momentarily to his lips.

 

Jughead decides he wants one last kiss before he ruins everything by telling her how he really feels. And so, he pulls her mouth to his and kisses her. But she doesn’t push him away at all. Instead, in response, Betty just _melts_.

 

“Betty,” Jughead pulls away from her lips, cradling her face like it’s the most precious thing in the world to him. He sighs as he looks her in the eyes and says, “This is me kissing _you_.”

 

Betty puts her hands on his arms, “I know.”

 

“No – _you don’t_.” Jughead kisses her again, “This _isn’t_ practice Betty, not for me it isn’t. God, don’t you know that by now?”

 

“Yes.”

 

“Wait, you know?”

 

“Yes, _I know_ ,” Betty sighs, “Now kiss me _again_.”

 

Jughead grins and with all the force he can manage he pulls Betty against him, kissing her without restraint. He buries his face against Betty’s neck for a minute as Betty lets out a high-pitched whimper, which resounds from her throat and vibrates onto his lips. “ _Fuck, Betty_ ,” He moans at the sensation; the sound makes him feel as though he’s about to come undone. He pulls his mouth from her neck and smothers her lips with his, tugging at the hem of her nightgown as she leans into his kisses. When Betty pulls it over her head, Jughead yanks her waist towards him and slides a thumb underneath her bra strap.

 

He leans down to kiss the skin beneath the lace, “ _Can I_?”

 

Betty nods, “ _But first_ ,” she slides a hand down his jacket, “Let me take _these_ off.”

 

She slides his jacket off his shoulders easily and tugs at the white shirt beneath it. Jughead wastes no time in taking it off. Once he’s bare-chested next to her, he doesn’t hesitate to go straight back to what he was about to do; in one swift motion, he yanks her bra straps down and begins kissing the top of her chest. Betty pulls his mouth to hers and unhooks her bra, tossing it aside. Jughead presses her chest to his, grabs her by the thighs and carries her over to the bed. Once her back hits the sheets, his mouth covers hers as Betty wraps her legs around him.

 

“Fuck, _Betty_.” (It’s _almost_ too much).

 

Jughead begins kissing her neck, hands moving down the length of her body. He pulls her lips from his as his fingertips hit the pink lace beneath her waist. He rubs his thumb above the lace, just barely skimming it. He looks up at Betty and she nods. Once they’re off, Betty makes quick work of his jeans and then his boxers. With both laid bare, they roll around together for another minute, tangled up in each other as they begin making-out.

 

Their moment comes quickly. As Jughead holds Betty in his arms, he kisses her as he pushes into her, hiking her legs up around his waist. It doesn’t take long before Betty lets out cries of ‘yes’ comingled with ‘don’t stop’ - _and_ , he almost cries when he hears those three words escape her lips – _I love you_. Jughead does the same, but not before he manages to choke out ‘ _I love you, too_ ’ as he buries his face into her neck.

…

An hour later, Jughead hovers above her. Both are now drenched in sweat as he kisses her lips and her forehead before burying his face into her neck once more.

 

“Jughead?”

 

He pulls his face from her neck and cradles her head in his hands, “What is it, babe?”

 

“That unrequited love interest you told me about, that day we were sitting on the bleachers.”

 

“What about it?” He can’t help but grin now as the girl he loves lies beneath him. He presses a kiss against her forehead, the sweat of her brow feels warm and wet against his lips.

 

“Well, what happened to her? I mean, who is she?” But Betty already knows the answer, she’d figured it out the first time he’d kissed her. And now, all she really wants is to hear him say it.

 

“Well,” Jughead touches Betty’s neck again and presses his lips to hers, “As it turns out, _she_ liked me back after all.”

 

**_Fin._ **

 

**Author's Note:**

> So, what'd you think?
> 
> I had so much fun writing this short story for you guys! I think it turned out really well because I was listening to oldies as I wrote it and just had this vivid idea of Betty and Jughead falling in love so quickly with just a single kiss. I've always imagined the song "And Then He Kissed Me" to be Betty and Jughead's love story. IF you don't know this song - check out the lyrics! 
> 
> And even though Jughead isn't quite as jealous on Riverdale, we do see him acting jealous in episode 5, which prompts him to make a move on his girl. I just love jealous Jughead so much. I do think he's a very romantic, sensitive guy.
> 
> Please leave me some love in the comment section below. <3


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